Lake House Fixer Upper: Building A Deck With A View

I have been living and breathing this lake house fixer upper for the past 7 months. In some respects it seems like it’s taking forever and then when I look back at how far we have come I think…wow! We have made so much progress in so little time and I am proud of what we have accomplished.

From the moment I laid eyes on the view from this property, I knew I needed to find a way to maximize every aspect.

This is the view from the deck off of my master bedroom. It’s hard to believe that the master was previously on the street side of this property…right? It looks so beautiful with no railing or spindles getting in the way. Unfortunately, keeping it this way was unrealistic and unsafe.

I began this lake house project by making a list of wants.

Here are the three that topped the list:

1) A clear view of the lake

2) A rustic modern feel (Clean lines yet comfortable)

3) Low maintenance (Nobody wants to go to the lake and work right?)

With a clear vision of what I wanted for the home, I sought out to find reputable companies that offered products to help me accomplish the dreams I have had from day one.

Let me introduce you to the product I found to make our decks safe without obstructing any of the view: Feeney CableRail.

I can’t say enough good things about this product. It has modern, clean lines; it is almost invisible; it’s maintenance free and was so easy to install.

Let me show you how easy…

Supplies Needed:

This will vary depending on your project. Read all of the product descriptions, installation instructions, and frame recommendations on www.Feeneyinc.com.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Feeney Inc.. All opinions are based on my personal experience and 100% my own. See full disclosure here.

Tools Needed:

Safety Glasses

Work Gloves

Pencil

Measuring Tape

Electric Drill

Drill Bits

Hammer

Cable Cutters

Vice-Grip Pliers

7/16″ Wrench

Grinder and Disk

Hacksaw

Cable Lacing Needle

Quick-Connect® Release Tool

Hanger Bolt Installation Tool

Tension Gauge

3/8″ open end Wrenches

For our deck structure, we started by attaching a 2″ x 6″ smooth cedar board at a height of 36″ for the top rail. This board was fastened directly to the 6″ x 6″ deck posts with long deck screws. Next, we added a 1″ x 4″ cedar board (wood blocking) for added lateral reinforcement right under the 2″ x 6″ board. The last step was adding a 2″ x 4″ cedar board for a bottom rail.